KING Charles returned to Dumfries House on Friday to hear "incredibly powerful" testimonies from two men on how his charity helped reshape their lives after they were caught up in violence.
Joined by deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, he met with ambassadors and officials from the King's Trust and members of the Police Scotland-led Scottish violence reduction unit (SVRU), an initiative that aims to target all forms of violent behaviour.
The King listened intently as he heard from two young men, Reece Hayes and Mohammed Mansaray, who had endured many years of hardship due to various forms of violence.
The pair spoke of their stories and told how the King's Trust and the SVRU had helped them to break the chains of their old lives and begin anew.
Mr Hayes, 28, told how his troubled youth led him to become involved in crime as he grew up.
He told the King: "I didn't have any aspirations, I didn't really think that I would be able to go to university, I didn't think I was intelligent enough.
"When I went to the Prince's Trust they really supported me, they gave me so many opportunities in employment, because I had really struggled to gain employment because I had convictions."
The King's Trust says it believes that every young person should have the chance to succeed, no matter what their background or the challenges they face.
Through the help of the charity, Mr Hayes is now in university studying social work and has gained employment.
The King, who listened carefully through his testimony, smiled and replied: "Fantastic."
He also heard from Mohammed Mansaray, who told how he arrived in Scotland as an asylum seeker in March 2020.
Mr Mansaray now calls Glasgow his home, but when he first arrived in the city he was placed in a hotel, where he was stabbed five times and was saved by emergency services.
The injuries he sustained, however, had caused his "dream" of becoming a professional sportsman to wither.
He told King Charles: "At that point in time, my dream of becoming a professional footballer died. And I was just staying at home doing nothing, thinking about killing myself."
With the help of the charity, he was able to get back on his feet.
He said: "I am in university now, not thinking about all this bad stuff."
The SVRU works to identify innovative, evidence-based solutions to violence. The unit is made up of police officers, civilian police staff, and people who are experts by experience.
The SVRU works closely with colleagues and partners across health, education, social work, housing and many other fields using a public health approach to reducing violence.
Speaking to the two men, Ms Rayner said: "What I find inspiring about what you say is the opportunities that were given so that you could find your voice and also help others.
"It's incredibly powerful and hopefully the work you're doing now and what you are achieving is giving opportunities to other people as well."
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